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Ruthless Chelsea bring in Benitez

Steve Douglas

Chelsea have surprisingly brought Rafael Benitez out of the coaching wilderness, hiring the Spaniard in an interim role after mercilessly firing the man who guided the club to its first Champions League title just six months ago.

Benitez agreed to a contract with the European champions until the end of the season, nearly two years after being fired by Inter Milan in his last coaching position.

He filled the vacancy created by Roberto Di Matteo's sudden departure earlier on Wednesday following the team's dip in form over the past month.

Tuesday's 3-0 loss to Juventus proved to be Di Matteo's final match in charge, the result in Turin leaving Chelsea third in its Champions League group and in danger of becoming the first holders to fail to reach the knockout stage.

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"I am extremely proud of the successes and trophies that we were able to bring to the club in recent months," said Di Matteo, who also won the FA Cup last season during his spell as interim coach before being taken on full-time in June.

"Lifting Chelsea's first Champions League trophy, in Munich, was the best achievement in club history and without doubt the highlight of my career.

"It is a memory I will treasure for the rest of my life."

Di Matteo's exit was another demonstration of the ruthlessness of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, who is up to his ninth manager since buying the club in 2003.

Abramovich is widely known to prefer a more attractive style, seemingly in contrast to Benitez's trademark defensive approach.

For that reason, Benitez's appointment may just be a stop-gap measure to give Abramovich more time to lure the man widely believed to be his first choice as coach, Pep Guardiola.

Guardiola is on a one-year sabbatical after leaving Barcelona at the end of last season.

The 52-year-old Benitez comes with experience, having also been in charge of Valencia and Liverpool - the club he won the Champions League with in 2005.

Chelsea fans will be concerned about Benitez's record at Inter, where he lasted barely six months, and also his style of play, which is widely regarded as defensive.

Benitez was flying to London from Abu Dhabi on Wednesday and will meet the squad for the first time at the club's training ground on Thursday.

His first match in charge will be in the Premier League on Sunday at home to Manchester City, the reigning champion and unbeaten leader.

Di Matteo was told he had been fired at a 4 am meeting on Wednesday at the club's training ground, soon after landing back in England following a flight from Turin.

He is believed to have already said farewell to his players in the dressing room after the loss to Juventus.

Andre Villas-Boas, who was fired by Chelsea to give Di Matteo a chance to manage his former club, described Wednesday's goings-on at the west London club as "just another day at the office".

"That's football," said Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho, another to have been jettisoned by Abramovich.

"I'm never happy when a manager is sacked ... (it) is a feeling that no one likes to have."